My Little Pony Fan Labor Wiki:Guides/Fancomics
The article should start off with an introductory lead section. It should only contain the comic's title, creator(s), and a very short summary of what the comic is about (no more than two or three sentences). Other important information, like the publication date, should be left to the infobox. If the comic has a title page or logo, that logo can be added as an image to the infobox. There is a special infobox ( ) for comics which are ongoing and released at a regular schedule. __TOC__ Style This section is optional. It is intended to answer questions which include: *Does the comic have a consistent format (e.g. six panels per page)? *What is the story's narrative perspective? Do we see events from the perspective of a single character? *Do we see the emotions and thoughts of the characters? How are they presented (thought bubbles or captions)? *What is the comic's general narrative structure (length/content of chapters/segments, presence of frame story)? *Are there typographical peculiarities (different kinds of speech bubbles, mixing of fonts, consistent use of color)? Summary This section is mandatory. It must contain a summary of the primary events that happen over the course of the comic's story. The wiki has no rules about how long such a summary should be, since every story is different and hence every summary has to be different. But it should be detailed enough to give a reader with no prior knowledge of the story an idea of what happens in it, without getting bogged down by too many details that would overwhelm a reader. Note that the summary should be written in the historic present tense; for instance: "While Pony X is investigating the sounds coming from the basement, a butterfly lands on the windowsill". The plot should be described from the perspective of a reader, not the perspective of the characters. For unfinished works, the summary should also only reflect pages that have already been published. For completed comics, please summarize at least the premise, major developments, and the ending of the story if you can't fill in the details until later. It is not necessary to write one paragraph (or more) per page, particularly if the pages have very few panels; sometimes a single sentence is sufficient to summarize all the important events that happen on a page, or even on several pages. As an encyclopedia, this wiki does not warn readers away from potential spoilers. The summary should not do so either, or contain any subjective commentary of any kind. This includes editorial stock phrases like "Now, Pony X must fight against the infection threatening all of Equestria... if she can survive that long" or rhetorical questions like "Will Pony X make it in time? Or will she be too late?". They are perfectly legitimate in the proper context and can serve to entice potential readers to take a look at a comic so they can find out how it ends. On the wiki, these phrases should be avoided at all costs. Please use your own words as much as possible and do not copy the story description from another website. You can add excerpts from the comic to complement the summary, but no more than one image per every two or three paragraphs. Characters This section should not contain just a list of characters who feature in the comic and nothing else. Instead, it ought to complement the previous section: where the summary contains a broad-strokes overview over the comic's plot and the most important actions the characters undertake to bring that plot to fruition, the character section should track the development arcs of individual characters. As such, it is more analysis than synopsis. If a story only has one main character, it is best to forego this section altogether and write about the character's development in the summary. If the story features original characters, they can be written about here. Any description of such a character should be brief, to-the-point, and focus on how the character is relevant to the story's plot. This also applies to characters from the show whose personalities are very different from what a reader might expect. There is usually no need for complete character biographies: answering the following questions is typically sufficient: *What kind of character is it (main/supporting; dramatic/comic; kind; gender)? *What role does he/she play in the plot? *What is his/her motivation? *Does his/her personality develop? *What, if any, is his/her thematic relevance? Reception Comics that are very popular often garner derivative works of their own, like sequels, other stories using the same characters, fan art, music, translations, fanfic adaptations. Specific examples can be listed and linked to here. External links This is another mandatory section. It should be structured as a series of bullet points with links to other websites. One of these links must lead to the comic the page is about, ideally a gallery or archive page providing every installment of the comic. *This is an example for an external link; it leads to google.com. *Other external links are allowed if they are relevant to this page and its topic; a podcast interview with the author, for instance. *Wikipedia pages relevant to this guide: **How-to for plot summaries **How-to for writing about fiction